Kelly body blow

LIAM KELLY: knee problem required surgery.

ATHLETIC captain Liam Kelly has had minor surgery on a troublesome knee problem and will be ruled out of action for the next four to six weeks.

Kelly (25), who stroked home the penalty in the 1-1 draw with Shrewsbury, went under the knife yesterday and won’t play again until at least the visit of Wigan to SportsDirect.com Park on Saturday, September 26.

The loss of the influential captain was keenly felt last season and it represents a blow for manager Darren Kelly as he gets his squad prepared for the derby clash at Bury this weekend.

“It has been an ongoing issue with Liam,” manager Kelly said. “There is no doubt it is a massive loss, to be honest, but at the same time we have lots of quality in midfield.

“It is a chance now for someone to come in and really stake their claim.”

One other player who will not start at Bury is new signing Mark Yeates.

The tricky winger, who is with Athletic on an initial one-month deal, adds to plentiful options in midfield and can operate in the ‘hole’ behind the strikers as well as wide on the left.

With no game-time yet under his belt this season, Yeates will be eased in slowly just as David Dunn has been in recent weeks.

“We are monitoring Mark closely in training,” Kelly added. “He has done terrifically well so far and we know what he is about.”